


The Truth of the Isle

by DarkangelLolo



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: F/M, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-12
Updated: 2020-03-28
Packaged: 2021-01-29 14:53:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21412003
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkangelLolo/pseuds/DarkangelLolo
Summary: "If you do this, there's no going back, Uma. I can't help you anymore.""You? Help me?! Ha!"Ben's time on Uma's ship takes a darker turn, revealing just how bad things are for the VK's on the Isle.
Relationships: Ben/Mal (Disney: Descendants)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 62





	1. Chapter 1

"Let's see how you like the whip."

Ben's eyes widened. He was cut loose and forced to face the mast.

"If you do this, there's no going back, Uma. I can't help you anymore."

"You? Help me?! Ha!"

Ben flinched as they forced his jacket off. His hands were pulled around the mast and held in place while his shirt was lifted up. He couldn't believe this was happening.

"Uma-"

"Gag him."

A strip of dirty cloth was forced in his mouth before he could try to reason with her, tied tightly. God, what was happening?! One minute they'd been talking, the next she was ordering this madness.

"How many lashes should I give the precious king, Harry?"

Harry smirked at Ben.

"Twenty should do nicely, Cap'n."

Ben's breathing sped up. He tensed, trying to prepare himself. Nothing could've prepared him as the first lash came down against his back. He cried out into the gag. The whip came down again. And again. And again. There was no time in between for Ben to catch his breath. He tried to count them, pain flaring through his back with each new lash. Twenty passed and she stopped.

Ben panted heavily through the gag, sweat dripping down his face. Uma came to stand in front of him, smirking.

"Maybe now you'll understand what it's like to live on the Isle."

His eyes widened. Was- was she talking about her parents doing this to her? Child abuse? She nodded, expression turning dark.

"You live in your perfect world while we're stuck taking this. Daily. You think you can come in here with pretty words and   
convince us?! Harry, give him another ten licks."

"Aye Cap'n."

Ben's eyes squeezed shut as the whip came down again.

"You think you'll ever be our king? After your father left us here to rot?! No. We'll save ourselves, king."

The lashes stopped, the teenage king barely able to stand. Pain shot in waves through his back. That had been well over an extra ten, reaching seventeen before Uma had put her hand up for him to stop.

"Not too many, Harry. We don't want to kill him."

"Aye Cap'n."

His shirt was pulled down, his jacket forced back on. Ben cried out into the gag as the thick fabric rubbed against his sore back. His knees nearly buckled at the wave of pain that washed through him. Uma laughed cruelly, motioning for her pirates to tie him up again. His hands were forced behind his back.

"If you think your little girlfriend is going to save you, well, let's just say you overestimate your odds."

Ben looked up, eyes a little glassy from the pain.

"We're pirates, Ben. We play by our own rules."

She'd just admitted to him that they weren't going to honor their deal… And he was gagged, with no way to warn Mal or the others. He flinched as his wrists were tied together far too tight.

"Now, we wait."

Hands pushed him onto his knees before the pirate captain. They held him there while he caught his breath, the pain slowly receding to a dull throb. He heard Uma's laugh, flinching.

"Welcome!"

Harry Hook pulled him to his feet, pushing him towards and onto the plank. Ben looked up, meeting Mal's eyes. He tried to tell her it was a trap with just his eyes, the gag too tight to get out more than a muffled "Mmph."

"You gagged him?!"

Uma shrugged.

"He wouldn't stop talking."

Ben glanced at her before looking back at Mal. But Mal was looking at Uma.

"We brought it. Now give us Ben."

A hook came to rest against Ben's neck, close enough to slit his throat with one wrong move on the king's part. Ben took   
in a shaky breath.

"Give me the wand and I won't kill him."

"That wasn't the deal!"

"It is now!"

"Uma!"

"Mal!"

The sharp hook broke skin, a small drop of blood sliding down Ben's neck. He held his breath.

"Okay okay!"

"Wait! I want to make sure it's real first. Do a spell."

Mal glanced back at Carlos, Evie, Jay and Lonnie before nodding. She said something, and suddenly Dude could talk. Ben breathed out as the hook left his neck.

"See, it works. It's real. Now please, let Ben go. You'll get the wand, just give us Ben."

Uma seemed to think about it for a moment before nodding to Harry.

"Why not? We have no further use for him. Give me the wand."

Harry half-dragged Ben off the plank and towards Mal. Ben was shoved to his knees again, his hands cut loose. Mal took   
one hand, her other holding out the wand. On the count of three they switched, Mal pulled Ben to her side of the gangplank. He pulled out the gag with a shaking hand.

"Mal-"

"Run."

She whispered the word to him, pulling him further away from the celebrating pirates. His eyes widened as he watched Uma lift the wand.


	2. Chapter 2

"Now, Ben. We need to run."

He followed Mal, Uma's scream of frustration piercing the day. The pirates attacked. Lonnie tossed him a sword. He managed to catch it just in time to defend himself from Harry Hook. He fought off the pirate the best he could, every strain of his muscles sending pain through his back. Harry shoved him against a wall, Ben crying out as his back made contact. He dropped the sword as a wave a pain ran through his system, knees buckling. 

"Ben!"

Harry levelled his sword with the king's throat, holding it there. Ben swallowed thickly through the pain.

"Drop your swords."

Uma spoke commandingly. Mal dropped hers instantly. Jay, Carlos, Evie and Lonnie followed suit.

"What did you do to him?!"

"Showed him a little life on the Isle. Now, you're going to bring us the REAL wand this time, or we kill Ben."

Ben flinched, no doubt in his mind that she would follow through on her threat. Two pirates came towards Ben. He quickly found his wrists tied back again, a dagger at his throat instead of Harry's sword.

"We'll bring it."

"Uh-uh. They'll bring it. You get to stay here, Mal. Extra incentive to get the REAL wand."

Some pirates came forward and grabbed Mal. She let it happen, not even struggling.

"Get her the wand."

Jay, Carlos, Evie and Lonnie all nodded before taking off. Mal waited until they were gone before speaking again.

"Taste of the Isle? What did you do, Uma?"

Uma smirked motioning to her men. They pulled Mal and Ben back onto the ship, the dagger disappearing. Ben let out a   
breath he hadn’t realized he'd been holding.

"You'll see."

Ben paled.

"Uma-"

"Gag him."

The gag was stuffed back in his mouth before he could get another word out.

"Uma!"

"Her too."

Ben actually struggled a bit when they tied a gag in Mal's mouth. Uma chuckled darkly.

"Well, someone doesn't like that. Let's see how she likes watching you bleed."

Ben lost all color. He'd already gotten 37 lashes… His hands were cut lose and he was forced against the mast again. Mal tried to call his name through her gag, fighting against the pirates holding her back as they forced his jacket off and lifted his shirt.

"Twenty lashes for trying to trick me."

Ben bit down on the gag, determined not to cry out in front of Mal. He could feel his girlfriend- ex-girlfriend- Mal's eyes on him. 

The whip came down. Five lashes in and Ben could feel blood slipping down his back. He cried out around the gag at the next hit. Ten more lashes passed in a haze of pain, the king only staying on his feet because of the pirates holding him up. The final five lashes were the worst as Uma took great delight in layering them on top of already bleeding wounds. 

Mal struggled in the pirates' grip the entire time, tears springing to her eyes as she watched Ben take the punishment.

Uma glanced over at her as she handed off the whip.

"You've gone weak."

She stated it matter-of-factly, Mal glaring at her.

"Throw them in the brig."

Mal's hands were tied behind her back, as were Ben's. They were led- or dragged in Ben's case- into the ship's brig and thrown in a cell. Mal crawled towards where Ben had landed on his knees. Both of them were still gagged.

Ben was sweating, half out of it from the pain flaring through his abused back. Still Mal moved to rest her forehead against his. It calmed him significantly, just feeling her presence there with him. His breathing slowly returned to normal. The two didn't move for what felt like hours, desperate for some contact to ensure the other they were there.  
~ ~ ~ ~

Boots echoed down the stairs towards the brig. Ben moved a couple inches so he was shielding Mal from the door, determined to protect her no matter what it cost him. Mal rested her head on his shoulder for a brief moment before the door opened.

Harry smirked, leaning against the doorframe. Mal glared at him, her eyes glowing.

"Now, now, princess. Don't want us to hurt the king again, do ya?"

Her eyes stopped glowing, though the glare didn't leave her face. Uma gently pushed Harry out of the way.

"You've gone weak, Mal. I've never seen you cry before."

She held out a hand towards Harry, the older boy handing her a dagger. Ben tensed as she approached them. Uma rolled her eyes.

"Relax, I can't kill you until I have the wand."

That wasn't very comforting for either prisoner. Uma unlocked the cell door, swinging it open. She approached Ben, the boy still tense and watching her warily. She brought the dagger up, cutting the gag off him with one swift movement. Uma then repeated the action with Mal before going to lean against the cell's doorframe.

"I didn't know you knew HOW to cry."

"You've lost your mind, Uma. You whipped the king!"

"He deserved it!"

"No he didn’t! He doesn't!"

"Mal."

Ben whispered out hoarsely, trying to get her to stop antagonizing Uma. Mal quieted, mostly because of his pleading   
look. Ben turned back to Uma, the girl watching with amusement.

"I can still help you, Uma. You have to let us go, and I promise I'll help get you and the other kids off the Isle. No one deserves to suffer like that."

Anger sparked into Uma's eyes.

"You think a couple whippings lets you know just how much we've suffered?!"

"No. I won't pretend to understand what you've gone through, but I can help. Stop this now, before it goes any further. I can still help you right now, but if you go through with this then all of Auradon will call for your head. Let me help you. Let me help all the kids abused on the Isle."

Uma shook her head.

"No. You had your chance. You chose to save only four."

"He's going to bring more. We were the test run, the beginning of a program to save the Isle kids, Uma."

Mal spoke up, voice pleading as she tried to get through to Uma. The daughter of the Sea Witch just shook her head.

"I don't care. It's my turn now."

She turned and left, Harry locking the cell door before following her out. Mal growled softly in frustration.

"She won't listen!"

"Mal."

Ben turned his head towards her. Mal looked at him worriedly.

"Are you okay?"

He tried to nod, the movement jerking his back. He gasped in pain, stilling the movement. Mal moved closer to him, until their arms were touching.

"It's okay. Don't move. You'll be okay."

Ben caught his breath. He took comfort from how close she was, her touch grounding him.

"Mal, I'm sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Ben. I was scared and now we're trapped on Uma's ship."

"I shouldn't have pushed-"

"I love you."

Ben's eyes widened.

"I love you, Ben. I'm sorry I haven’t said it sooner. I was scared if I admitted it I'd lose you, but watching Uma hurt you hurt me more than anything I've ever taken. I love you, Ben."

"I love you too."

He closed his eyes and kissed her gently, resting their foreheads together after. A line she'd spoken stood out to him.

"Anything you've ever taken?"

His eyes opened and he leaned back.

"Mal, did your mom hurt you?"

There was pain in Mal's eyes as she reluctantly nodded.

"Mal-"

"It's okay. It's just the way life is on the Isle."

"It shouldn't be. I'm so sorry you had to go through that. I'll stop that, get all the kids off the Isle, once we get out of here."

He tried to sound sure of himself, but at this point getting out of there seemed unlikely for either of them. Not unless Uma had a change of heart and saw reason.

"Ben-"

He let out a shuddering breath.

"I know."

He did know just how much luck they would need to get out of this.

"She won't kill us. She's not her mother."

"Are you sure?"

Mal nodded.

"Obviously that doesn't mean she won't hurt us, but it's something."

He nodded, their heads just an inch apart.

"It's something."

Mal reached up, cupping his jaw with one hand. He leaned into the touch for a moment before his eyes widened. 

"You're free."

He breathed it out in a whisper, glancing nervously towards the door. 

Suddenly they could hear fighting from above. Mal quickly started working on his ropes with the pocketknife she held clutched in one hand.

"I'm an Isle kid, Ben. We always carry a weapon. They think I went soft so they didn't check my boot."

She got him free. Ben held her hand in his shaking one. They touched foreheads again for just a brief second. Footsteps started pounding down the stairs towards them. Mal put herself in front of Ben, shushing him when he tried to protest.

"I have a weapon."

He kept their hands interlocked, grudgingly accepting that she was right and he couldn't do anything. The door slammed open.


	3. Chapter 3

Jay slammed the door open. Ben and Mal both let out a sigh of relief at the sight of him. Two castle guards followed behind him. Ben finally relaxed, leaning heavily against Mal. She gladly took his weight, still holding his hand.

"Get us out of here, Jay."

Jay complied, quickly picking the lock. The castle guards guarded his back, keeping any pirates out of the brig. Jay and Mal managed to get Ben to his feet between the two of them, practically holding him up.

"Don't touch his back."

Jay's eyes widened.

"She didn't."

Mal nodded angrily.

"Oh, she did."

"D-on't ki-ll h-her."

Ben barely got the words out, crying out in pain as Jay's arm accidently brushed against his back.

"Sorry, sorry."

Jay's arm slid low around his waist as he tried not to touch the king's back again. The guards led the way back up. There were at least a dozen guards on deck who had captured the majority of the pirates. Uma was being held by two guards, Harry by another three.

Mal and Jay got Ben off the ship and to a limo. All the guards flanked him, leaving Uma and her crew for another day. Their most important mission was getting the King back to Auradon.  
~ ~ ~ ~

The King-Father and Queen-Mother were waiting at the castle doors. Again Mal and Jay were the ones who carried Ben in. Ben tried to walk between them, barely managing to put one foot in front of the other.

"What happened?!"

"I was stupid and ran off to the Isle, Ben came to get me. He got kidnapped and whipped."

"Not your fault."

Ben muttered softly, wincing through the pain.

Then he passed out.

~ ~ ~ ~  
When Ben came to he was lying face-down on his bed. Mal sat by his head, running her fingers through his hair. He woke with a start, nearly crying out at the pain the action sent through his body.

"Shh. It's okay. We're safe."

Ben relaxed at Mal's words, blindly reaching his hand out towards her. She grabbed it, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"We're safe."

Ben let her words wash over him, comforted by her touch.

"M-Mal."

"I'm here."

"The kids. We have to help them."

"We will. Right now you need to relax. The Cotillion's been cancelled."

"No."

"Ben, you can barely move. They rescheduled it for a couple weeks."

He raised his head to look into Mal's deep green eyes.

"I'm sorry."

She huffed out a half-laugh, tears in her eyes.

"You didn't do anything. It was my fault you were even on the Isle."

Ben squeezed her hand.

"Not your fault."

Mal gently ran her fingers through his hair.

"Sleep, Ben. It'll help. I'll be here when you wake up."

Ben let her actions lull him to sleep, the pain fading into the background.

~ ~ ~ ~  
Ben woke to Mal's voice.

"You did good, Jay. Alerting the guards was the best move."

Her voice was just above a whisper, clearly meant for him to sleep through. He was always a light sleeper, though.

"It was Lonnie's idea."

Jay spoke just as quietly.

"I'm glad you listened to her."

"Me too."

Ben spoke just as softly, too tired to speak any louder. Mal's hand had still been running through his hair. She paused for barely a second before continuing the comforting action. Ben glanced up at Jay, who was standing by the door.

Jay smiled at him, his eyes lit up with concern.

"Hey Ben."

"Hey."

"You look better?"

Ben let out a half-chuckle which turned into a half-groan. Mal leaned down a bit to kiss his forehead.

"Careful."

She whispered, playing with his hair. Ben managed to smile up at her. Even in pain she could still bring a smile out of him.

He turned serious.

"Jay I need you to make a list of the most abused kids on the Isle. We'll get them off first. We need to get all the kids off the Isle as soon as possible. Tell my parents what's going on there. And Fairy Godmother. Bring them all here."

"You need to rest, Ben."

"We need to get this started, Mal."

He looked up at her, seeing the worry in her eyes.

"I won't try to get up, but we need to start talking about this now."

Ben muttered to her, squeezing her hand back. Slowly Mal nodded approval, sighing. Ben managed a small smile up at her before he turned his eyes back to Jay.

"I need you to bring them here, Jay. Tell them it's about what happened on the Isle."

Jay nodded before darting out of the room.


	4. Chapter 4

The King-Father and Queen-Mother came into their son's room. Ben was laying on his side, his head in Mal's lap. His back was facing away from them, though they'd already seen the angry lash-marks. There were a few chairs on the side of the bed that Ben faced. They took two of the seats, hoping for a deeper explanation of just what had happened. Fairy Godmother came in a few seconds later, followed by Jay, Evie and Carlos. Carlos closed the door behind him.

"We need to get all of the kids off the Isle."

Ben wasted no time, going straight to the point. The King-Father sat up straighter, his wife quickly grabbing his hand.

"Why now, sweetie?"

"Because Uma has brought it to my attention that the majority of them are being abused."

The Queen-Mother gasped, gripping her husband's and tighter.

"Oh dear. Are you sure?"

Fairy Godmother questioned worriedly.

"It's true, Fairy Godmother. We didn't say anything because we thought it was normal until we came here. And we didn't want to be sent back."

Mal spoke for the four V.K.'s present. Ben gently squeezed her hand, trying to convey his love for her without words as he met her eyes.

"We need to bring them ALL to Auradon as quickly as possible. No one should have to suffer like this from their parents."

"I don't understand. A pirate kidnapped you and whipped you to-to prove what? That they were being abused?"

"She did it to show me what the kids on the Isle have gone through. I'm not saying it was the right way to do things, Dad, but it happened. And now we have to help those kids, Uma included."

King Beast stood up angrily.

"No. She is NOT coming to Auradon! None of those pirates who hurt you are!"

"Dad!"

The King-Father stopped, noticing the kids in the room. Carlos and Jay stood in front of Evie slightly, tense and ready to take a hit. Evie was trembling behind the boys. Mal was shaking slightly, Ben holding onto her hand tightly to help calm her.

King Beast took a deep breath, his wife taking his hand and pulling him back down towards his chair. He took a few more deep breaths while the tension settled down in the room.

"I'm sorry for losing my temper. I'm not mad at anyone here, only the PI-pirates."

The word started to come out harsher than he meant, and he stumbled over it as he tried to reign in his anger. Ben was looking in Mal's eyes, a silent conversation passing between the two. 

The current King sighed, reluctantly nodding.

"For now we will focus on getting the kids off the Isle. We'll discuss the pirates at a later date."

The King-Father gave a jerky nod. He'd accept that answer for the time being, although there was no way he was allowing those pirates to come to Auradon.


	5. Chapter 5

Plans were made late into the night. By the next morning they had a working plan to get the kids off the Isle within the week. The Queen-Mother was working on housing for all the kids too young to attend Auradon Prep. Fairy Godmother was working with Mal on magical ways to safely and quickly assist in the rescue. The King-Father would be in charge of the soldiers.

Jay, Carlos, Evie and Mal had managed to make a working map of the Isle. They marked key points where they knew VK's would hide for safety. They also marked the different gangs that led each section of the Isle. Uma's territory was marked in red. They would save the kids in her area, but her and her crew were marked off-limits for now. They'd have to work around them.

Mal and Fairy Godmother came up with a spell that would put to sleep all the Villains above the age of 25. The oldest VK was eighteen. This would give them time to round up all VK's on the Isle and bring them to safety. They broke the Isle into four sections. Mal would help Fairy Godmother cast the spell, then she would lead the rescuers into her section of the Isle. Evie was taking the section under control of Anthony Tremaine since she had the best relations with one of his cousins. Jay would take Uma's section with a heavy guard and the King-Father. Carlos would take the last section, which was the least populated. The forest… He would also have a heavy guard since the worst of the worst had created camps in the forest and regularly attacked each other. Kids living there would likely need the most medical care since they had nowhere to run to for safety.

Ben was still recovering from the lacerations across his back. He would be unable to lead the kids to freedom, so he would help his mom with the hospitals that would be waiting for the kids. He'd give what aid he could when he could stand. By the end of the week, when they would take action, he should be able to assist in the hospitals.

~ ~ ~ ~

They were ready. Fairy Godmother and Mal cast the spell at the Isle. A green light drew out from them towards the Isle, washing over it. They couldn't be sure it had worked until they got onto the Isle. They were going with the entire guard force, as well as soldiers from some neighboring kingdoms that had been brought into the plan. Queen Snow was horrified to hear how the VK's were treated, as was Queen Cinderella. They convinced their husbands to help provide support for this mission.

The Isle had a force-field around it that stopped them from using evil magic on the Isle, time would tell whether it allowed good magic through.

~ ~ ~ ~

Villains fell asleep left and right, slumping over against whatever they were near. VKs looked around in fear, unsure what was going on. Then there were soldiers in the streets. In each section one of the four VKs who had gone to Auradon stood, speaking of freedom and safety in Auradon. While many of the older VKs were wary, the younger jumped at the chance and were soon in different guards' arms being carried to the trucks by the bridge. Many older VKs quickly followed their younger siblings, intent on protecting them in a new situation.

Jay and King Beast had gotten the kids in Uma's gang's section to safety, her crew surrounded by soldiers to stop them from interfering. Soon the only kids on the Isle were Uma and the pirates. All VKs were safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sequel to come when the muse for this starts up again. Sorry it's taken so long. :(


End file.
